Wow, I was so startled when he suddenly called for me!
Only after leaving the main building did I finally catch my breath.
Seeing my legs trembling, it seemed the tension was only now easing.
‘The adjutant was right.’
He’d said his superior wasn’t such a petty person.
As expected, he hadn’t earned the position of the Grand Duke’s adjutant for nothing.
On top of that, today I had witnessed an unexpected side of him.
‘I’ll take good care of it.’
The Grand Duke of Pellium had smiled brightly.
‘That’ Grand Duke of Pellium!
For a moment, I could only stare at him blankly.
It was a kind of instinct.
‘How can a person look like that?’
Even thinking about it again, admiration came naturally.
I hadn’t realized it because he was usually so worn down, but I found myself newly aware of the fact that he was a handsome man.
‘As expected, bribery—no, a gift—works like a charm.’
Mmhm.
Having reached my own conclusion, I nodded and walked on.
Then, something I’d forgotten suddenly came to mind.
‘I should have told him the flowers will bloom soon!’
I meant the jasmine flowerpot from earlier.
I’d heard that once the flowers bloom, the scent grows stronger, so I had deliberately chosen one with buds just beginning to form.
Even though it was much more expensive.
‘I didn’t get to show that off.’
It was a bit of a shame to miss the chance to highlight Lilian’s sincerity rather than the money.
But it was already done.
I decided to take satisfaction in the fact that the Grand Duke’s reaction had become much more favorable.
‘Anyway, I’m glad things worked out well!’
* * *
—Or so I thought.
“First, we’ll handle the mine issue this way.”
“Do so.”
“Ah, and this is a report from the territory. It concerns the wasteland reclamation you ordered last time.”
“Hmm……. Progress is faster than expected.”
“Yes, at this rate, it seems we could attempt cultivation around the year after next.
The researchers you sponsored are also all responding positively—”
This was the Grand Duke of Pellium’s office.
The Grand Duke and his adjutant Dylan were diligently turning pages and handling official duties.
And I was…….
Clink.
Standing quietly between them, setting down teacups and desserts.
Like a ‘true’ personal maid!
‘Isn’t this going a bit too well?’
Since the day I was summoned by the Grand Duke, I had been assigned proper work.
In the morning, I organized the bedding he had used.
At lunch, I attended his meal.
The rest of the time, I mostly waited nearby and quickly procured whatever was needed.
In short, it was the typical work of a personal maid.
‘Is the jasmine flowerpot this powerful?’
Compared to before, the adjustment in my duties was so drastic that I was bewildered.
I still hadn’t adjusted even after several days.
Just then, Dylan opened his mouth.
“By the way, Your Highness.”
“What.”
“Is Miss Lilian now working here?”
In that instant, I felt Dylan’s intense gaze.
I deliberately ignored it and placed the half-finished teacup on the tray.
I planned to excuse myself under the pretext of bringing a new one.
But before that, the Grand Duke’s answer came first.
“Then where else would my personal maid work but here?”
“I recall that wasn’t the case originally, though…….”
“Is that important right now?”
“No, it isn’t.”
Reading his displeased reaction, Dylan quickly turned his head.
‘He said himself that his survival instincts were excellent.’
He certainly seemed that way.
Just then, the Grand Duke added one more remark.
“Just as Kyung works as my adjutant, ‘Lily’ is simply doing the work she’s been given.”
Slip.
My hand, tidying the teacups, went off course.
At the same time, the adjutant asked back with a dumbfounded face.
“……Pardon? What did you just say—”
Whether he cared or not.
The Grand Duke cut off his adjutant’s words and looked this way.
“Isn’t that right?”
His red eyes sparkled playfully.
Having suddenly become Lily, I awkwardly averted my gaze.
“Haha…….”
Yes, this was the biggest reason I felt things had gone ‘too well.’
A nickname.
Lily, no less!
‘Since when were we on that kind of terms, Your Highness…….’
A man who usually called me ‘you,’ ‘hey,’ or ‘oi’ suddenly saying this left me quite flustered.
And the nickname wasn’t even ‘Lili’ but ‘Lily.’
This wasn’t so much a nickname for a grown adult woman as—
‘It’s exactly like what you’d call a small child or a pet!’
I couldn’t tell if he was deliberately teasing me or if he had some other motive.
Unable to figure it out at all, I decided to just keep my mouth shut.
“Lily…….”
Meanwhile, the adjutant muttered to himself as if shocked.
I fully understood his feelings.
I still hadn’t adjusted either.
Knock, knock—
Just then, a knock came from outside the door.
At the Grand Duke’s permission, a butler with a familiar face walked in.
His hair, faded with age and neatly swept back, he calmly bowed his head and spoke.
“A guest has arrived from the Imperial Palace.”
At those words, the Grand Duke’s brow furrowed.
He looked somewhat annoyed.
“I’ll go right away.”
Having let out a small sigh, he immediately left the office.
Seeing as there was no particular instruction, it seemed I didn’t need to follow this time.
‘Hmm…….’
Left in the office, I decided to finish the work I’d been doing.
First, clear the tray—
“Miss Lilian.”
Ah, that person was still here too.
The adjutant Dylan, still holding his position, asked in a rather polite tone.
“How did you come to be Lily?”
“I don’t know either.”
“Oh my, that must be quite a shock.”
He shook his head as if in pity.
Then he neatly organized the scattered documents.
Why didn’t that person go out with the Grand Duke?
“Ah, His Highness dislikes pointless followers.
He thinks it’s more efficient to read even one more document in that time.”
I see.
Perhaps because he felt my gaze, Dylan explained on his own.
As expected of the adjutant who’d been chased out for his breathing being bothersome—he was quick-witted.
I half-listened to him and headed toward the window.
‘This place gets good sunlight.’
Thanks to that, it was less troublesome.
I sprinkled water over the flowerpot that was full of sunlight.
Yes, it was the jasmine flowerpot I had gifted.
‘Was it a mistake to give it?’
I hadn’t realized it when I gave it, but come to think of it, as the Grand Duke’s personal maid, I was the one who had to take care of it.
I’d never raised a plant in my life!
Fortunately, with the gardener’s help, this one was still alive.
I’d nearly watched it wither before it could even bloom properly.
“Miss Lilian, you’re diligent in everything.”
Huh? Suddenly?
At the somewhat abrupt remark, I tilted my head.
At that, Dylan smiled lightly and continued.
“Just now, you were watering it so carefully.
For that one tiny flowerpot.”
No, that’s because jasmine is vulnerable to overwatering…….
I was about to correct his misunderstanding but soon closed my mouth.
A misunderstanding in a positive direction was rather welcome.
“Is that the secret to winning His Highness the Grand Duke’s heart?
Hmm, perhaps the answer is closer than I thought.”
……When on earth is that person leaving?
Watching the adjutant solemnly pop snacks into his mouth alone, I secretly swallowed a sigh.
* * *
The next day.
The Grand Duke left the estate for the first time in quite a while.
Yesterday, a guest had come from the Imperial Palace.
It seemed he had been summoned by his father, the Emperor.
‘Oh yeah!’
Thanks to that, I got to spend a more relaxed day than usual.
It was one of the few advantages of being a personal maid.
“Good morning, everyone!”
“Hello, Lilian.”
“You look especially happy today?”
I greeted the people I passed and headed to the garden.
Since I had some free time, I was planning to go thank the gardener.
As I turned the corner with light steps—
Whoosh!
At the presence felt right in front of me, I instinctively dodged.
Phew, any later and I would have collided.
As I raised my head with that thought—
‘Huh……?’
A young knight with exotic features was staring intently at me.
‘W-what is it?’
A face I felt like I’d seen somewhere.
Had I run into him while passing by?
As I searched my memory, the young knight seemed to recall something and pointed at me, shouting.
“You! That time, the piece of wood—!”
